How do i find a helicopter?

Top Voted Answer

At the start of the game, the player wasn't intended to be allowed to use a helicopter...so none spawn on the East island until bridges are clear. However, you can take advantage of glitches to get around blockades (and thus, be able to reach a helicopter early in the game). A PCJ600 can drive right through the Southern bridge's blockade if you hit the right spot, for example. Another exploit you can use is to push a vehicle off either of the pier entrances, jump down onto it as it is floating in the water, and jump over to the dock from there (you can then get in a boat and sail right over to the West). If you have completed the 100 taxi fares (unlocking the hydraulic jump function), you can use the either style of taxi to jump *right through* the top of the gate at Pier 1. Similarly, you can use one of the Unique Stunt jumps to get inside Interglobal films using a motorcycle (or jump a hydraulic-equipped taxi though the main gate), then use the Packer vehicle inside as a ramp to jump over the wall to land on the bridge just to the North of it.

Anyway...

Barring any prep work, there are two that you have immediate access to on the West. The Police Maverick on top of the downtown police station, and the VCN News 'copter on top of the VCN News building. Just get to the top of said buildings via the stairs at the police station or via the doorway at VCN, and get in the related 'copter ;-) If the helicopter in question is not at the spawn location, try leaving the area and returning from a different angle.

There are 3 more helicopters which you can force to spawn in early stages of the game. The regular Maverick...which can be had just by purchasing the Hyman Condo downtown (it spawns on the roof for you to use whenever you want); the Sea Sparrow...which will spawn behind the Diaz mansion on Starfish Island after collection of 80 hidden packages; and the Hunter...which will spawn at the North end of the military base after collection of all 100 hidden packages (Careful! The military personnel there will shoot at you since you are not in uniform). This helicopter spawn point becomes active later if you completed the main storyline whether or not you've collected all the packages, however. An earlier mission which creates a police uniform spawn point ("Cop Land") allows you to enter the base without being fired upon.

NOTE: A neat trick to try after you've collected 80 packages is to use a scooter which Gamefaqs does not allow me to name (one is parked right alongside Ken Rosenberg's office) to pop a wheelie as you face to the North inside the little archway at the end of the Starfish Island bridge. If done right, you will "warp" to the next intersection (beyond the gated barrier) after falling off the scooter...so you can just run behind the mansion and fly away in the Sea Sparrow :-) This is very handy, since the glitch is so easy to perform and it's right next to where an armed helicopter spawns.

Additional helicopters will spawn after you've unblocked the barricades by playing though the Diaz mission thread:

A Maverick helicopter will spawn at the top of the Diaz mansion after you've killed him and taken it over. Just use the stairway inside the mansion to get up there.

There are 4 "chopper checkpoint" missions you can try...and each one features a Sparrow helicopter. Two on the West island, two on the East.

By playing through the Interglobal Films thread, a Sparrow spawns for the "Martha's Mugshot" mission.

The final telephone assassination mission features a Maverick on top of the Cherry Popper's "Ice Cream" factory.

If you've gotten all 100 hidden packages and completed the main storyline, an additional Hunter helicopter *may* spawn occasionally on the lower end of Washington Beach (at the house that has the Helipad...just South of the Ammu-Nation there). Approaching the area when inside a police/military vehicle may help if you have trouble getting this one to show up.